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Mobile, increased sharing affects the health industry

As the technology of the health industry moves more online, there are better tools hospitals and providers can use, but with this comes increased threats. Moti Rafalin, CEO of WatchDox, writes on Government Health IT that more mobile devices, sharing on websites and hacking attacks aimed at companies are all concerns for companies in 2012. There is no simple answer to any of these problems, but Rafalin said increased internet security measures and precautions can help mitigate risks.

"Educate users to lock their mobile devices and PCs with PIN codes and passwords," he writes on the website. "Encourage the use of strong passwords. The most secure online passwords include a random combination of upper and lowercase letters, numbers and special characters that are at least eight characters long. Educate employees to detect social engineering and phishing scams so they do not get tricked into giving away these passwords to malicious parties."

Other precautions to take include making sure antivirus software is up to date, deploying technology to protect medical records and documents, and having technology that protects computers.

A hospital in Georgia recently saw first hand the affect hacking can have, as Gwinnett Medical Center had to be shut down for three days and turn away patients due to a virus. Antivirus software should play a key role in keeping hospitals safe.